Alfa Romeo News

Alfa Romeo, the Italian motor manufacturer, has a rich history in Formula One. The company has competed as both a constructor and engine supplier sporadically between 1950 and 1987, with their works drivers winning the first two World Drivers’ Championships in the pre-war Alfetta. During the 1960s and 1970s, several Formula One teams used independently developed Alfa Romeo engines to power their cars, with limited success. However, in the mid-1970s, Alfa engineer Carlo Chiti designed a flat-12 engine that achieved some success in taking the 1975 World Sportscar Championship. Bernie Ecclestone, then owner of the Brabham Formula One team, persuaded Alfa Romeo to supply this engine free for the 1976 Formula One season, leading to the team taking 14 podium finishes, including two race victories for Niki Lauda.

Following a second period as a constructor between 1979 and 1985, during which time they did not win a race and never finished higher than sixth in the World Constructors’ Championship, Alfa Romeo’s logo returned to Formula One in 2015, appearing on the Scuderia Ferrari cars. In 2018, Alfa Romeo announced that they were to become title sponsors for Sauber from 2018, and had entered into a technical and commercial partnership with the team. The partnership saw the Swiss team renamed Alfa Romeo Racing for the 2019 season, marking Alfa Romeo’s return to the sport as a commercial partner.